Hands Bound in Blood
by Kirishi Kaze
Summary: Kai is a hitman for a private military company and agency. He's mastered the art of killing at just 17 years old and is the best they have ever employed. But when he is given an assignment to do the opposite of what he's always done, he doesn't quite know what to do.
1. Chapter 1: Briefing

**A bit of background on Kai**

 **When Kai was a young child his parents were missionaries in the Middle East. After witnessing their murder he's had to fight and survive with a militia. 12 years later, Kai is a professional killer hired by Trinity; a private military company and agency. His art and professionalism made him one of the best and most experienced killers Trinity has ever employed. Kai has always been assigned to assassination operations, until now.**

 **Story starts here**

After each successful mission Kai liked to clean his equipment because the job can get a little messy. He always kept his tools in the best condition because it can mean the difference between life and death. One little error, one faulty little problem, can make a huge impact on the mission and himself.

Kai entered his room and set down his briefcase on the desk beside his bed. His room was a studio apartment, so it was pretty tight packed. He opened up his briefcase and removed a handgun with a custom chrome finish in desperate need of a polish. Kai pulled a pin out of the middle of the gun right under the slide, he pulled the slide off the frame and proceeded to dismantle the weapon. He took his cleaning rod and inserted it into the barrel to clean any dirt or powder left behind from the rounds he fired. Suddenly, a ringing from across the room interrupted his concentrated silence. Kai looked over and let out a sigh, he sluggishly stood up and made his way to the phone which was resting on the counter in his small kitchen.

"Hello?" he answered in a slightly annoyed voice.

"You did good Kai, but I have another mission for you." A female voice said to him over the line. It was a familiar voice to Kai, her name was Jennifer. She was his intelligence operator, or the more informal way of calling it, his handler. Her job was to provide mission information of targets as well as to plan his missions.

"Is it another assassination?" Kai responded, bored as he has completed similar assignments so many times he's perfected it.

"No, this is a very different assignment. Come to the briefing room tomorrow at 0600 hours and I'll go over the details."

The line cut off and left Kai with the empty beeping sound of the disconnected call. 'A different assignment? What could that possibly mean? How can there be any other mission for me other than assassination?', Kai thought to himself, staring at the wall.

Kai proceeded to finish cleaning his weapons at his desk. He cleaned the blood and powder off of his custom made handgun. After he's finished cleaning and polishing his gun, Kai, still being just a 17 year old boy, turned on his gaming console. He likes to play video games just like everyone else his age. It's the one "normal part" about him. Because he has to be at the briefing at 0600 hours, he quickly aborted any plans he had for his leisure time. All he has time for now is a shower. He started the water and striped off his clothes, revealing his toned and muscular body. His protruding pecks and defined abs made his body look more fit than an average 17 year old's. He ran his fingers through his brown hair, water careened through it like a water fall. He scrubbed down his bulging arms and sturdy legs, making sure his entire body was clean and washed away the wreak of blood and sweat. Kai stepped out of the shower, dried off and wrapped the towel around his waist. He put on a tank top and shorts and climbed into bed. Staring at the ceiling his mind wandered. 'What could this assignment be?' he thought to himself curious and confused before closing his chocolate-brown eyes.

Kai entered the small briefing room which was located near the middle of the Trinity building early in the morning. It was a 3 story building with 2 basement floors. One of the lower floors was dedicated for training, while the other was for constructing equipment for tasks and missions. This was a professional enterprise who created their own ammo so as to not leave any forensics which could be traced back to them.

Kai was greeted by Jennifer, his handler. "Good morning, Kai."

He looks at her in almost a zombie like state. "What's this mission?" he snapped with curiosity.

"I'll go over it during the briefing," she said in an intriguing tone. Kai let's out a sigh like a kid who was rejected when asked what he got for Christmas. "Don't get so trigger happy Kai. It won't help you with this assignment," Jennifer quickly responded, looking over her shoulder. She lead Kai to the table with two chairs at each end. Kai pulled out the chair and sat down, giving his undivided attention. Jennifer opened the case file that revealed pictures and information on the target.

"Her name is Ariel, 16 years old. She's the daughter of Trinity's CEO. She never really knew her father, but that doesn't mean someone won't try to use her as blackmail. She also lives alone in an apartment and is highly vulnerable." reported Jennifer, looking Kai dead in the eyes.

"So it's another assassination?" Kai responds even more confused than before. "I thought this was a different assignment."

"Your job is to watch over this girl, monitor her, protect her. Which means you have to get close to her." Jennifer explained as she spread out multiple information sheets. "Ariel attends Ridgemond High School. That means you'll be attending too." She let out a small smile, "like a normal teenager."

Kai, still trying to process the information, interrupted her. "So I have to protect this girl from potential threats instead of killing her? Wouldn't it just be easier to assassinate her? I mean, then she wouldn't be able to be used as leverage."

"No Kai, this is the daughter of Trinity's CEO. This mission came straight from him. You should be honored! He sees you as the best and most trusted employee for this assignment." Jennifer exclaims.

"Yes ma'am, I understand." Kai immediately straightened up as if he was "at attention", but in a chair. However, Kai didn't really understand at all. To him, this girl's life wasn't any different than any other life he'd taken.

"This is serious Kai. I know you only do assassination operations, but this girl is now your number one priority." Jennifer seeing right through him knew he didn't really understand. She had been working with Kai since he was 12. She felt like a big sister to him, always looking after him. Kai was picked on by other employees for being strange. His social skills weren't always the best, and most of the time his face had little to no expression unless he forced it. Jennifer took Kai under her wing as his handler because she saw potential in him. A killer with no emotion, no expression, he was the perfect assassin. Even though Kai didn't show much emotion to others he showed more around her behind closed doors.

"How do I start?" Kai asked not knowing how to proceed with this operation.

"You'll be attending Ridgemond High School. We've already set up your living quarters. You'll be staying in an apartment across from Ariel." Jennifer explained everything to him. Kai stood from his chair, ready to start his new mission. "Oh, by the way. You can't use the your signature custom guns. You'll have to use the ones I provide you," she told Kai springing out of her chair. Kai turned around looking at her dead in the eye. Her gray eyes widened. The look in Kai's eyes were one of a cold blooded killer. Even though she was his handler she knew that with his background he could kill anyone and not care.

"The CEO requested that you turn your issues into me, you'll get them back when the mission is complete." She said quietly, staring at the floor.

Kai nodded and removed his custom made handguns, placing them on the table. Jennifer then handed Kai an ear piece used for secret communication. It was a small piece, one that only fits in the ear and is the least conspicuous. She proceeded to hand him his new weapons; a glock 17 and a glock 26. Kai took the the 17 and stuck it in his holster under his arm, then took the 26 provided with a bootleg holster. He knelt down to strap it in place, hiding the tiny gun inside his boot. He stood up and watched Jennifer take his guns and store them in a briefcase.

Kai and Jennifer left the briefing room. "So where am I headed now?", Kai asks.

"Pack your stuff up tonight, you're leaving for America first thing tomorrow." Jennifer responded without even looking at him.

Kai returned home to start packing. First he packed extra magazines and ammo, and finally, almost as an afterthought, he packed his clothes. The briefing ended earlier than he thought it would. He went in at 6 in the morning and here he was packed and ready to leave at 3 in the afternoon. So with nothing better to do he turned on his game console. It might be the last time he can play it for awhile. Kai usually liked to play action and adventure games, or shooters. Although the games portray war and combat terribly, he still finds it entertaining. After spending several hours killing time playing games, watching TV, cleaning and fiddling with the guns Jennifer gave him. Kai took a long shower thinking about his new assignment. 'Watching this girl from afar and monitoring her would be way easier. But why do I have to get close to her? What good would that do?' Kai thought to himself, standing in the shower. His head hanging down with water pouring over him. Kai was returning to America, where he was born. The thought of that seemed weird. He knew his parents were from America, although he doesn't remember much about them. Sadly, he does remember their deaths. Hearing his mother scream and going quiet as 2 shots were fired into his mother. One in the head and the other in her back.

He shut off the water and quickly stepped out of the shower as to disrupt the thought of his parents' death. He was a soldier, a killer. He learned not to get attached to people as they don't stick around very long. Fighting with the Militia since he was a young child stripped him of most of the humanity he had left. It eventually made him into a stone cold killer who has no remorse for who or what he killed. It was the only thing he was good at, killing. After the Militia disbanded his former colleague suggested he work for Trinity, where his years of fighting for survival could be used professionally. He became the best at it, although he didn't care. It gave a him a sense of purpose in life.

While exiting the bathroom the phone on the counter rang again. Kai walked over to investigate. The caller ID said "unknown". He grabbed the phone, without answering it, then grabbed his gun and went back into the bathroom. With his back against the wall and gun pointed at the door, Kai answered the phone. Suspicious it could be an assassination attempt as it was a common trick he used several times to create a distraction to set up the kill.

"Hello?" Kai says in a calm voice with little to no expression in the tone.

"Kai, this is the CEO of Trinity, it's a pleasure to talk with you." The voice on the other end of the line sounded rough, that of a man in his 50s or 60s.

"Yes sir, it's a pleasure to talk to you, sir." Kai had met and talked to the CEO a handful of times during his employment at Trinity.

"I just wanted to let you know how important this operation is. My daughter must not know who you are, and most especially not know about me. You must know the importance of this mission, son. There is a very good reason why I kept my daughter out of my life. I need it to stay that way." The tone in the man's voice was deadly serious.

"Yes sir. I understand the importance of this mission and I will do my best to make sure your daughter is safe and won't find out about you or Trinity." Kai responded, almost as if he was an automated machine.

"Best of luck to you, kid." The phone hung up and Kai slowly opened the door to the bathroom, to make sure there were not any potential threats. The room was clear and he walked out of the bathroom towards the counter to set the phone down.

"It's not a problem." He told himself aloud, proceeding to change into clothes. Kai fell onto his bed not even bothering to get under the covers, soon passing out from exhaustion.

24 hours later

Kai met Jennifer at the apartment where he would be staying. As promised, it was across from the apartment building Ariel lives in. It provided the perfect view of her apartment. "You'll be starting school tomorrow. This is your schedule for your classes. We made sure you had all the same classes as Ariel. School starts at 8:30 and ends at 3:30. Your gonna have to keep an eye on her outside of school as well." Jennifer handed Kai the school schedule.

"So I guess this means I won't get any leisure time, huh?" He said almost as if he was disappointed.

"Ariel is your number 1 priority, there must not be any distractions. As soon as we know there isn't any threat you'll be relieved of this assignment." Jennifer exclaimed to Kai in a stern voice. Kai nodded, acknowledging the situation.

"How long will I be working this assignment?" He asked, staring into Jennifer's stormy eyes.

"Until we know for certain that there are no threats or the threat has been eliminated." She returned the eye contact with Kai, looking into his chocolatey eyes.

"So why not have me eliminate the threat? I'm better suited for it than protecting some girl." Kai was starting to get a little irritated, but not enough to be so noticeable.

"Your the one person best suited for this operation. We have others working to find and eliminating possible threats. You better start getting ready for tomorrow, it's the start of your mission." Jennifer started to make her way towards the exit of the apartment room. "I'll be in touch." She said before opening the door and walking out.

The following morning Kai prepared himself for the day, hiding his weapons. He tucked the glock 17 into the holster on his lower back, hidden inside his pants. He picked up the glock 26 and slid it into the holster in his bootleg. It's common sense that weapons, especially guns aren't allowed on school premises. But Kai wasn't aware of that at all, he has a mission to do. Protecting this girl is number 1 priority. The worst thing that could happen he's already come to terms with. If someone kidnapped her, he would kill her to keep Trinity's security safe. Even though that wasn't an order given to him, he didn't care. It's a decision he made, and he made alone. He'll accept the consequences of his decision and his actions.

Kai made his way to the school. It was actually much bigger than he expected. He'd never been to a school before. The ones he saw in pictures were pretty small, the buildings only had one room. He wandered the halls of Ridgemond High School looking for his first class. Walking into his first class he noticed her. A beautiful girl with long milk chocolate hair, and lurring, warm, velvety eyes. She looked like the girl in the picture Jennifer showed him during the briefing, but older and more attractive.

"Hey Ariel!" A girl walked up to her and greeted her with a smile on her face.

"Where were you last night? We agreed to work on our school project!" The girl who seemed to be Ariel suddenly lost all the charm she had and blew up in front of who Kai initially thought was her friend.

"I'm sorry, I completely forgot." The girl replied, her head hanging low in guilt.

"Ugh, your so unreliable. I can't do all the work myself!" Ariel spatted back at her.

Kai made his way to the back of the classroom, ignoring the dispute between Ariel and her friend as it's not something he wants to hear. He decided to sit at the desk in the corner of the room. It's the best place for him to observe the environment, and watch his back.

"Kai can you hear me?" Kai heard Jennifer's voice from the little ear piece she gave him.

"Yes, I can hear you." Suddenly eyes from the room all stared at Kai as he if we're bizarre and crazy.

"Have you met Ariel yet?", she questioned him.

"Yes, I see her." Again the eyes in the room stare at him. He looked strange talking out loud with no one around him.

"No, you need to make contact with her. Go over to her and say something." Jennifer instructs him. Kai stood up and walked towards Ariel. He's never done something like this before and it was strange to him. Kai always killed his targets, never walk up to them out in the open with witnesses. As he approached her, Ariel looked up and found him standing in front of her. She didn't know exactly how to respond, but she tried to be friendly.

"Umm, hello?" She says uncertain of what he's doing.

"Hello." Kai returns the greeting. Quickly, he turned and walked away leaving Ariel confused and the moment awkward. Her friends just stare at her, also confused.

"Well that was weird," Ariel muttered to herself.

"I have made contact with the target." This time no one actually heard him as he was whispering.

"I heard. That's not exactly what I meant. You need to get closer to her." Jennifer responded with slight disappointment.

"That was a pretty awkward situation. I'm not even there to see it, but even I felt the awkwardness," she added.

"Just go sit down and keep an eye on her," she instructed him.

After the school day ended Ariel had after school activities, so Kai waited. When Ariel left to head for home Kai followed. He lived across from her so he had to go the same way anyways. He kept his distance so as to not grow suspicions. While passing an alley way Kai noticed something was off. A figure hiding around the corner.

"Not good," he said to himself. He dashed towards the creeping like figure. It jumped out at Ariel, which was soon tackled by Kai. Leaving Ariel shocked and confused. Kai looked down and saw a young looking high school boy. He had dark hair and pale skin. Compared to Kai he looked almost like he was anorexic. Kai looked up to see if Ariel was okay. Her face, mouth wide open, was in complete shock. Kai then, assessing the situation the best he can, took off running towards his apartment.

"Excellent work Kai. You always knew how to handle the situation." The voice on the ear piece responded in a sarcastic tone, soon busting out in laughter.

"You were watching?" Kai asked.

"I have access to the traffic light cameras. You weren't hard to find. Who else would tackle a random person in public?" The voice told him.

When the assassin arrived back at his apartment he noticed something was off. He pulled out the gun stored in his lower back. Scaling the wall, he peaks around the corner. Feeling a clunky block pushed up against his head he hears a voice "Hello Kai."


	2. Chapter 2: An Old Friend

Kai spun around and grabbed the gun that was pushed against the back of his head. The Ashened hair female then ducked followed by a punch to the male's stomach. Hunched over from the blow the assassin bends down to grab the gun in his boot leg. Both figures end their brawl with guns shoved in their face.

"I'm disappointed in you. You let me, out of all people, get the drop on you." The woman stepped out of the shadows revealing her silvery hair and green eyes.

"My apologies, master." The brown eyed male still holding the gun to her face.

"Well aren't you two peas in a pod." Jennifer interrupted the moment after hearing all the ruckus.

"I trained you better than that Kai, and please call me Iris from now on." The woman replied.

"Yes, master. But, you also trained me not to put a gun right up against you're target." The male lowered his gun to his side.

Jennifer broke silence over the comms again. "Be careful Kai, she's a rogue agent."

The women's name was Iris; she trained Kai how to be an effective killer without being noticed, or leaving any evidence. He was her best student. She started training him since he joined, and in less than a year, he mastered the ghost technique. That's when Jennifer took him in as his handler. However Iris went rogue after being given an order to kill her own brother. She killed him as she didn't have a choice, but left the company with all the secrets they have. Now she does more private work.

"My, you've really changed. You're not that little boy I once trained anymore. You look like a real man now." Iris slightly used a flirty tone. However it flew right over Kai's head.

"And age hasn't been treating you very well has it?" The assassin smirked.

"Hey, I'm in my twenties!" Iris blew up, but then smiled and laughed it off.

"So what is Trinity's most skilled assassin doing here?" She added, walking over to the couch and taking a seat.

"I'm not authorized to give you that information." Using no expression in his response.

"Of course not. Why did I even bother to ask. Come, it's been awhile since we've seen each other. I didn't 'drop' by for nothing." Iris's humor hasn't changed, she still uses the terrible puns she always has.

"Yes, master." Kai sat next to his former instructor.

Iris locked eyes with him. "I told you to call me Iris didn't I? I'm not your instructor anymore."

The young male averted his eyes. "I understand."

Iris gave him a grin. "Man, after all that moving I could use a shower, care to join me?"

"No, it is dangerous for both of us to be in a vulnerable position. You go ahead and I'll keep watch." Kai was clearly oblivious as to what was asked of him. However, the silver haired woman just laughed it off.

"Of course not, you think with your logical head, not your second one." The female stood up and made her way to the bathroom.

"Oh, and don't peek. Okay?" The female stopped and looked over her shoulder giving Kai a wink.

Kai tilted his head in confusion. He had a job to do and after the mistake he made today he has little room for any more error.

"Hey Jennifer?" He broke the silence between the two.

"If you're about to ask how stupid you are for not realizing what you just missed out on? You're pretty fucking stupid." The feminine voice told him in disappointment.

"What are you talking about?" Clearing showing that Iris's invitation went right over his head. "Anyways, you're a girl, how do I get close to the target?"

"Wow Kai, I wasn't expecting you to ask me something like this. Need some dating advice huh?" She was obviously teasing him. However the assassin never understands jokes and is always serious with the job. Unlike Jennifer who likes to have fun on the job. It can get boring sitting behind a desk with computers just watching from afar.

"First off, you messed up with your first approach to her. From what it sounded like is you just walked up to her and said 'hello', and walked away. In no way was that smooth."

"Smooth?" He repeated.

"Yes, you need to be smooth with girls." She assured him.

"I understand." The brown hair male trying to make sense of it all.

"You see that computer and head phones on the desk?"

"Affirmative."

"We bugged Ariel's apartment. From that computer you can hear everything that's going on. Don't be a pervert." She teased him.

"Alright, but how will that help me get closer to the target?" The cold blooded killer stood up and walked over to the window, peeking through to Ariel's apartment.

"Well obviously by listening in, you can find out what she's into, such as her likes and dislikes." The voice in his ear tells him.

The bathroom door opens and the ashen haired female steps out. Wearing nothing but a towel wrapped around her body displaying her hour glass figure shaped body. Her smooth pale skin glistening from the hot shower. Her hair hanging off one shoulder, still damp. The assassin couldn't help but stare.

"First time you've seen a women, huh? Like what you see?" The green eyed female slightly posed.

"Sorry, master." The muscular male averted his eyes.

"Don't be, it's perfectly normal for a boy your age." She replied waving her hand side to side. Then, came over to sit on the couch, still wrapped in a towel.

"What are you doing here, master?" Kai asked, not sure what the purpose of her presence is.

"I noticed you were in town and wanted to stop by to see my favorite student."

"What's the real reason?" The assassin clearly saw through her lie.

The ashened haired, green eyed women looked down. "Okay, okay. After I left Trinity I decided to settle down, take the civilian life, with the occasional jobs on the side. I just got out of a relationship and needed a place to stay."

"I understand, feel free to stay as long as you need to. But do not interfere with my work." The stone cold killer gave a glare, causing Iris to look back down again. The night was getting ever darker, and Kai needed to prepare for the next day. He continued listening to the bugs planted in Ariel's room, all the while cleaning his weapons. Iris put on some of Kai's clothing and crashed on the couch. By this time it was late, the young male knew he needed rest. He noticed that the woman across from him was asleep with a pillow, but no blanket. He got up and went to the closet and pulled a blanket from the top shelf. Yawning as he covers the female with the blanket, ensuring that all her limbs are covered, and heads to bed.

It was 8:25 in the morning when Kai arrived to class. It was quiet, the room full of half asleep teens with groggy eyes. He walked over to the back of the room, taking his seat. The Teacher walked in announcing the start of class.

"Good morning, today we'll be doing a project. You'll be working with partners. I've already assigned everyone to a partner so don't tell me who you want to be partnered with."

The Teacher began reading down the list of students and their partners. Students began moving from their desks and to their assigned partners. Finally the teacher announced Kai's partner.

"Kai... and Ariel." Ariel looked back at Kai. She stood up with a mopey facial expression and made her way to the back of the room.

"This is a great opportunity Kai. You'll be working with her on an assigned project." Said the voice in his ear, to which he didn't respond. Ariel pulled up a desk to connect with Kai's.

"So... I guess we're partners. Your name is Kai, is that short for Some thing?" The chocolate female ask.

"No." The male quickly replied.

"Smooth, man, smooth. You gotta be smooth with her, she's trying to make conversation with you." Said the voice in his ear. Kai looked at the female across from him. They're eyes connected, but her's soon averted.

"So Kai, where are you from?" She asked.

"Europe and the Middle East." He replied.

"I mean, where were you born?"

"I was born here." His voice bland with no expression.

"Dude I know your a killer, but don't kill this conversation!" Jennifer cried out.

"Oh, is that why you came back here?" The pretty girl across questioned him.

"I'm not obligated to answer that question." He said with his soldier manners.

"Okay." She said stretching out the sound of the word. "Well let's get started on the project, I'll do the research and you get the power point started." They started working in silence. As time went by they would occasionally look at each other, but never uddered a word. Each time they're eyes met Ariel grew ever more curious, as his eyes had such mystery behind them. It amazed her, his eyes showed a story. But not one that she could completely comprehend. She could see that his life was a tragic one. 'What happened that was so devastating?' She thought to herself. The boy glanced up and she quickly looked away. She knew it was rude to stare, but he has something interesting about him. His vibes feel cold, and heartless, but at the same time they're sad and remorseful. The feeling was so unfamiliar to her, she just froze up. She finally snapped out of it, noticing they're eyes were locked on to each other. He looked down back at his work, and she shook her head. The bell rang to dismiss the class. But they just sat they're, in silence.

'That was the weirdest thing I've ever felt. What is up with that guy?' She asked herself. 'He had a similar vibe to a war veteran, but different. He's so young, no way he could have experienced something like that.'

Ariel got up from the desk and walked out of the classroom. The image of his gaze engraved in her mind. She couldn't find the right words to describe him. He seemed old, but yet so young. As if he had already lived a life time. She rushed down the hallway, scurrying to get home. The sun shining through the windows, coming from the west side of the school. Stepping foot outside she felt the cool breeze and the mild heat from the sun shining on her face. The image still in her mind.

Kai followed her. She was moving as if she was trying to lose him. Of course being a professional hitman, he wouldn't lose her trail so easily. He was on the opposite side of the street keeping an eye on her. This time as to make sure he doesn't draw attention to himself again. Arriving home after ensuring Ariel made it home safely, Iris was still there. She greeted him, but Kai brushed her off. He went straight for the computer at the desk. Removing the his pieces from they're designated holsters and setting them on the desk. The male picks up the head set with one ear in the head phones. Ignoring Iris who was trying to make conversation.

After an hour of waiting and Iris finally making peace to leave Kai be, he hears Ariel saying something. From the sounds of it, she was on the phone. He couldn't quite understand what she was talking about. But it sounded like she was discussing plans to hang out over the weekend. The assassin tuned her out and took a look around the room. Iris was watching TV, a grown adult watching cartoons. The brown haired male didn't think anything of it. He tuned back into his target, who was now discussing something more interesting.

"You know that guy in our class?" She paused. "No, the one I was partnered up with today for that project."

"Yeah, him. Have you ever noticed anything strange about him?" She asked, pausing again. "No, of course I don't like him. He's weird." She let out a light chuckle. "He's really, really weird." Chuckling a bit louder.

"Weird, huh? I've never been called that before, a freak, but not weird." He said aloud to himself. "But what does that mean?"


	3. Chapter 3: The Past and The Present

**Flash Back Begins**

Deafening gunfire and sand kicked up from explosions had disoriented the soldier. Hiding behind a rock, clinging to his weapon. Men were screaming as bullets fly over their heads. The heat, about 140 degrees fahrenheit, made their mouths dry. Their bodies sweating profusely. The soldier just sat there, frozen, as if he was buried in ice. Off in the distance he hears his comrade calling his name.

"Kai, Kai! Come on! We can't stay here! We gotta keep moving!" The voice keeps calling him. The boy, who is still just a child, struggles to get up. His stomach, empty, begging for food. His legs worn and aching, and his arms swore. He looked over only to witness a soldier standing over a wounded comrade, yelling and trying to provide cover. The man takes a bullet to the shoulder, than another to the chest, and collapsed next the wounded warrior. The young boy was still disoriented from the sight. He feels pressure on his arm as it's gripped with a firm hand.

"C'mon, we gotta get outta here!" The voice said to him. The young soldier began picking up his feet, the figure dragging him away from the fight. Finally snapping back into reality he gets back behind another rock. Peaking around the side to see where the gunfire was coming from. He sets his gun on top of the rock to steady his aim, firing single shots into the ridge ahead. Moments later the boy ceases fire only to see a black figure tumbling down. Suddenly an explosion from a mortar about 10 yards away knocked him hard against the rock. The young soldier's body was running purely on adrenaline. He couldn't tell if he was injured or not.

A loud screeching noise followed by an angry roar was approaching from around the ridge. A tank with a 120mm gun and thick armor appeared. It seemed as if it was alive, furious to be woken. The beast turned his enormous gun towards the boy's comrades, unleashing a mad bark upon the soldiers. The blow was devastating. Young Kai witnessed as men disappeared, and others with missing limbs, watching them crawl away and struggle. He began to run with his fellow comrades, dodging and weaving from cover to cover. One by one his comrades would fall as if they were being slaughtered like a herd of buffalo.

"Follow me, there's a town to the East!" The man said. The young boy and the man broke off from their group and headed East. Splitting up was the only way for them to ensure survival as their comrades were getting slaughtered. The situation was hopeless, there was nothing they could do to save them. They were just a militia group, none of them had any real training, only a few.

The gunfire began to drown out in the distance as they got further and further away. It was safe to assume they weren't being pursued. Then, the gunfire stopped. It was silent, nothing but the sound of the wind could be heard. They had no idea what happened or if anyone had survived. The young soldier looked up. The sky was getting dark as the sun was setting.

"How much further to town?" The little soldier asked.

"2, 3 miles maybe? It shouldn't be far." The man replied. He was much older than the young boy. About 20 years older. His skin was dark, and his hair black and wet from sweat.

"How do you know where this town is?" The boy asked, uncertain if there really was a town nearby.

"I grew up there, it's where I lived." The man replied, his gaze fixed on the horizon. The man and the boy were both exhausted. Their feet blistered and bleeding from rubbing against their boots. The adrenaline wearing off and pain searing in. The young soldier grunted and stumbled as he moved. His side sending severe pain every step he takes. He knew they couldn't stop, or they'll die of dehydration.

"Look, there it is. My hometown. C'mon, I know some people there, they'll help us." The dark skinned man said. Young Kai looked up. The sight of the town was one of the most beautiful things he ever saw. It looked like a dump, but was a beacon of hope for him.

Arriving at the town they noticed it was almost empty. But when the town's people noticed the man they instantly recognized him. They welcomed the man and the boy to the village. The man recognized a small group of people and began talking to them. He turned to the little soldier.

"We're gonna be staying with these people tonight." He said with relief.

The two made their way to the small house where they filled they're bellies and tended to their wounds. Night had already fallen and it was silent. The young boy was lying on a pallet of blankets, it was his bed. He heard a car off in the distance. It's engine was whining and growling. It got closer and closer until it stopped, catching young Kai's attention. The growling engine stopped and the sound of the car doors opened and closed followed by a few men talking. Kai just lied there. The man was already asleep, unaware of what was going on. A women opened the door to them on the floor below. The men stormed in and the women began screaming, but soon halted after the sound of a gunshot. The man shook awake at the sound and immediately sat up.

"I think we're being attacked." The young boy said.

"Yeah." The man replied, grabbing his gun. They heard the men coming up the stairs breaching and clearing rooms.

"Kai, hide in the closet." The man whispered to him across the room. Kai stood up and took to the closet. He slowed his breathing to make as little noise as possible so to not find him. The men kicked down the door and stormed the room. Kai watched as his comrade started shooting. The men returned fire and incapacitated the dark skinned man. Two men picked up the soldier by his arms and the man who seemed to be in charge began interrogating him.

"Where's the child!" He shouted at the man on his knees.

The wounded man spit blood in his face and replied "go to hell."

The man wiped the blood off his face and shot Kai's comrade 3 times.

"Find that kid!" He demanded. The men began scouring the house. Kai froze, he just witnessed a death of a comrade, of a friend. He couldn't move no matter how hard he tried. His breathing began to speed up. The murdering bastard looked over to the closet and smiled.

"There you are." He walked over and violently opened the closet, exposing the little boy.

 **Flash Back Ends**

Kai awoke instantly lifting his head. He was lying on his stomach, his face was buried in a between two soft cushions. He looked up and saw Iris looking at him. He had no idea how he ended up on top of her. She just smiled and looked at him.

"Bad dream?" She asked. Kai nodded, and she wrapped her arms around him.

"For someone who acts so cold hearted it's surprising to know you get nightmares." She said tightening her grip around him. He buried his face into her chest again. His voice muffled as he replied to her.

Kai didn't necessary like the position he was in. He felt vulnerable, but it was his master that he was with so he was alright with it. Jennifer was usually the only person he had slightly opened up to. But the feeling he was getting from Iris was one that he felt safe and content with. Of course he never shared these feelings, after all, he was trained to not show his feelings.

Iris began caressing his hair. The feeling of her fingers running between his hair and the massage on his scalp was soothing. It was the first time he had ever felt something like that. It was totally different than the feeling of having his hair cut. The ashened hair female began whispering softly into his ear. He couldn't quite make out what she was saying, but her voice was soothing and her hot breath caused him to have a tingly feeling. He eventually let his guard down. It was a big risk to him, but Iris was able to calm him down and comfort him.

He fell back to sleep with his face buried in her chest for the next few hours. However, he awoke again, but this time he was alone on the couch. His master was no where in sight. Then, the smell of bacon filled his nose. The green eyed female walked in with a plate in hand. She presented it to the assassin.

"Here, I made you some breakfast." She said with a smile on her face. Kai stood there, puzzled. This isn't the Iris he knew, this wasn't his master that trained him years ago, she's changed. She used to be vicious and ruthless. But now she's being sweet and kind. The male looked at the plate in front of him with confusion. It consisted of eggs and bacon with toast. As he accepted it the ashened haired female smiled and sat next to him. He slowly ate, suspicious as to what his master was planning.

"Don't worry, I didn't poison the food. Eat, you need to keep your strength up." She said in a sincere tone. He finished eating the food that was prepared for him. His stomach was satisfied. He put the plate to the side and gazed over to the beautiful woman beside him, their eyes connecting.

"Master." He said before she cut him off.

"Please Kai, I'm not your master anymore. That stuff is behind us." She said, keeping her eyes locked on his. The male nodded.

"Anyways, you need to get ready for the day. Shall I prepare you a bath or shower?" She asked.

"No, that's okay, I'll do it." He averted his gaze, taking the plate with him to the kitchen.

"Kai?" The woman broke the silence as she was looking down at her lap, hiding her face.

Kai stopped, his back still towards her, and answered "yes?"

"What was your dream about?" She asked in curiosity.

The brown eyed male looked down. "Nothing," he said, then continued his path to the kitchen.

Iris knew he was lying, but she couldn't blame him for it. She knew about his past, but not the details. It's the reason why he was one of her best students. She had no idea what he has really been through, but for some reason, she wanted to be there for him. Even though she disappeared from his life for years, she deeply cared about him.

The male assassin ran his shower, stripping and exposing his muscular body. He stepped in and adjusted the knob to the right temperature. He stood there, thinking. The images of his dream playing over and over again in his head. Only, it wasn't just a dream. The events actually happened. He lost his friend, everyone he knew. The soldier grew angry and punched the tiled walls causing his hand to bleed. He felt guilty, he ran scenarios over and over again in his head on how he could of changed what happened. How he could of saved his comrades. He was mad at himself. He blamed himself for the death of his comrades and friends. He took the towel off the wall hanger and did a rubbish job of drying himself off. He wrapped himself and walked out of the bathroom. Iris sat there staring at him. Not soon after she realized his hand was bleeding.

"Kai!" Shd stood up and yelled at him walking over to grab a hand towel from the bathroom. "What the hell were you thinking!" She said, as she began attending to his bloody hand. He didn't wince, only gritted his teeth. The woman lead him over to the couch where she continued attending to his hand. She applied rubbing alcohol, which would kill any possible germs that tried to get in his wounds. She bandaged his hand with a gaze wrap as to keep it from being exposed.

"What's wrong Kai? Why would you do such a thing?" She said, obviously worried about him.

"Nothing, I'm fine." He stated. But Iris was not convinced.

"Kai, I've never seen you like this. I understand if you don't want to talk about it, but just know that I'm here for you. I know you always keep to yourself but just know that." Kai looked up at her, his eyes grew cold again. The ashened haired woman froze. He had the same look in his eyes as the first day she met him. Cold, angry, and distant, as if nothing phased him and he didn't care about anyone, not even himself. The male understood what she was saying and nodded. But didn't take much account into it.

The assassin just sat there, silent, waiting for the day when it'll be his turn to embrace his death, just like his comrades.


	4. Chapter 4: Can't Escape The Past

A few weeks went by since Kai supposively broke his hand. It was an early and bright morning. The male had awoken from his bed and found the beautiful Iris laying next to him.

'She must've climbed into my bed while I was asleep again.' He said to himself. It wasn't the first time the ashened haired woman has done this. It has been going on since Kai had his nightmare. He looked over to see her still fast asleep. Her face looked so innocent, her eyes were closed and her was mouth partially opened. The assassin stared off into space in her general direction, only to be slightly startled to see her eyes open and a bright smile on her face as he noticed she caught him staring.

"Watching me sleep were you?" She asked still half asleep and her voice soft. The assassin's face turned away looking towards the wall.

"I'm always finding you in my bed." He said slightly curious as to why.

"Well I hate sleeping on my own, I need a man to protect me." The green eyed female responded with a half joking half flirtatious tone.

"You're perfectly capable of protecting yourself, master." He stated, keeping his gaze at the wall.

Iris sighed. "You're no fun."

The brown eyed male looked back at her. "Fun? Why do I have to be fun? My mission is all that matters, I don't have time to for fun."

Iris sat up. "You're still so young Kai, you need to live a little, have fun and enjoy life."

The killer's eyes grew colder and looked back at her once again. "I have nothing in this world besides my mission, it's all I've ever known and all I ever will know. Without that, I am nothing in this world. So fun is out of the question."

"That's not true!" The female started. "You have me!"

The male shook his head and got up from the bed, leaving the room to get ready. Iris broke into tears, watching him walk out. The assassin gathered his gear to prepare for the day, and placed his piece in his ear.

"Well aren't you a heartbreaker." The voice in his ear told him.

"You've been listening?" Kai responded.

"Of course I was. It's my job to stalk you, or did you forget?" Jennifer replied.

"Lets just get on with the mission target." He said in a cruel and cold tone, walking out the door of the apartment.

It was a bright and sunny morning, and the streets were quiet as the male was walking towards the school. It was a warm morning but not hot, just the right temperature to decide whether or not to wear jacket. On the way to school the male ran into a cute milk chocolate haired female.

"Oh, hey Kai." Ariel walked up to him. The male turned towards her.

"Good morning." He responded.

"Good Kai, your getting the hang of conversing with a girl." Jennifer's voice poured into his ear.

"What are you doing here?" The young female asked.

"I'm, uh, walking to school." He said, unsure of himself.

"Do you live around here?" She rephrased her question.

"Affirmative." He answered.

The two began walking to school in silence of the morning peace. As Kai was wide awake, Ariel was still half asleep. She was dragging her feet with every step. The tip of her shoes would scrape the pavement every few feet. The sun was warming the side of their faces, a nice calm feeling came over the girl, but not Kai. He didn't get such feelings, he was always on high alert, after all, he has to protect her.

The cute girl beside him gave a small smile as they walked, never saying a word to each other. Arriving at the school the young muscular male opened and held the door for the female.

"Kai" the voice started, "I didn't know you have such mannerism, holding a door for a lady." Jennifer continued.

"I'm a body guard, it's what I'm supposed to do." He responded to her. He suddenly heard a loud smack over the comms; which was Jennifer giving a facepalm as Kai walked through the door. The duo walked into the classroom and found their seats. It was a pretty bleak morning as the teacher started the class, he handed out work sheets for them to do. Hours pasted in the silent room until the intercom broke the peace.

"Kai, you are needed in the principals office A.S.A.P." All eyes in the room locked on him as he stood up. He glanced over to Ariel before leaving the room, who gave him a worried and curious face. As the male made his way down the hallway he checked his firearms to make sure they were ready. He had no idea what to expect when he got to the office, so he had to use caution. As he approached the office he heard men talking, one sounded like an older man while the other had an accent. The assassin stood beside the door with his back to the wall and knocked on it.

"Come on in." The older man's voice said. Kai didn't answer, it could've been a trap, an ambush for all he knew. The man grew impatient and the sound of foot steps came closer. The door opened and the assassin rushed around the corner and grabbed the old man making him a hostage and meat shield for possible bullets. The killer pointed his gun at 2 men in the room who returned the gesture. Both sidesstared at each other, not making a move. The old man was breathing heavy and sweating profusely.

"Who are you?" Kai asked.

One of the men responded, his accent was Russian. "Krasnaya Zvezda Bratva."

The young brown eyed male froze for a second, his eyes narrowed. "What the hell does the Russian Mafia want with me? How did you find me?" He said in a calm and serious voice.

"The Russian Mafia?" The old man started before Kai tightened his arm around his throat cutting off his ability to speak.

"Kapitan vants to spik vith you." The man demanded.

"Well, tell your Kapitan that if he wants to speak to me, he should make the appearance." Kai's voice was harsh and bitter towards the mafia men.

"I'm afrrraid you kan't leave, unless it's vith us." The man's voice was threatening, but not alarming to danger. Seconds past by that made it feel like minutes in silence until the phone on the desk rang. The man answered it and put it on speaker.

"He's herrrre Kapitan." The man said.

"Zank you Nikolai." The voice from the phone said. It sounded low and deep, and a little rough.

"Who is this?" Kai asks.

"It Viktor." The voice answered him.

"Viktor? From Afghanistan?" He questioned.

"Da, komrrrade. I need yourrr help." The phone hung up before the assassin could ask anymore questions.

Kai let go of the old man who fumbled over to his desk. The man, Nikolai, left money on his desk. "You didn't see anything." He said. "Come, Kapitan is vaiting." He said.

The killer nodded and followed the Russian man who escorted him to a black car in the front of the school.

A man, larger than Nikolai, opened the trunk of the car.

"Seriously?" Kai asked. The Russian man nodded and smirked. "Ughh, fine."

As they drove off 2 sedans merged in their lane, one in front and one in back. It was clearly an escort to wherever they were going. Kai carefully calculated the time and turns it took to get to their destination. This whole time Jennifer was silent. This didn't phase the brown haired male. She often ghosted to not give away her or his presence when he needed to be stealthy. But at this time it was so they didn't know she was tracking him by camera. But that doesn't mean neither her nor Kai forgot about his mission. The stormy eyed female still kept tabs on Ariel, who at this time was going to lunch and was not in any immediate danger.

The vehicle came to a stop and the car doors opened and closed. The sound was accompanied by the men speaking Russian. They opened the trunk and the sun light was almost blinding, but after a few second the assassin saw two men standing in front of him. The larger man grabbed him and pulled him out of the trunk and covered his face with a black colored sack. He felt his arm gripped, the man had huge hands. He guided the brown haired killer into an indoor area. Kai had no idea where he was, even though he counted the number of turns and time it took to get there, the cover on his face made him unaware of his surroundings. All he heard was men talking in Russian. The young male was pulled left and right when turning down what he thought might be hallways or doorways. They came to a halt and he hears the man knocking, followed by a response said in Russian in which a knob unlatched and a door opened. The young assassin was pulled in to the room and his cover removed.

He looked around to see a wooden polished desk with a fancy chair. Behind the desk was a fire place with a built in shelf above it. The walls had a brown wooden texture and to the right of the room there was a grandfather clock up against the wall. On the left side of the room there were bookshelves filled with books of all different sizes.

The brown polished desk had a fancy desk lamp, a few books piled a bit off to the side with one opened in the center. In the fancy chair behind the desk was a man.

He was a bit older than Iris. His hair was blonde and eyes, blue. He was leaned into the desk with his elbows resting on it and his hands in front of his face, fingers locked with each other. He wore an old military jacket with Soviet Union markings. It was left unbuttoned and with a black shirt underneath. The man removed his hands revealing a burn mark on the right side of his face. He also had burn marks on part of his neck that lead down to his chest, disappearing underneath his shirt. He stood up to greet the assassin. He had a rather large build of muscle, and stood a good two inches taller than Kai. He held out his hand to the professional killer showing scars on his arm that peeked out from the sleeve.

"It's good to see you again, komrrrade." The scarred man said.

"Well, that's certainly quite the hospitality you got there." Jennifer remarked in Kai's ear, eavesdropping.

The assassin reached out to shake the older male's hand. It was firm, and rough, much like his own. He certainly had the hands of a soldier. One that had fought in many battles. He looked the man in the eyes. They were cold and dark, showing pain and mystery just like his. Their eyes connected for a few moments before Kai let go and returned the greeting.

"It's been awhile, Viktor." He replied to the man standing over him.

"Da, komrrrade, it has... Ahh, look at you. You've cerrrtainly made life forrr yourrrself after varrr in Afghanistan." Viktor said, impressed.

The brown haired male smirked. "You've seemed to have figured things out as well."

"Da, after Soviet Union fell my men and I strrruggled forrr yearrrs trrrying to find place in vorrrld. But like you ve decided to do what ve do best, and ve make money vith it." He said, smiling.

The assassin had no clue as to what the reason for bringing him there was. He thought they needed his help but he seemed to be playing catchup instead.

"Viktor, what is the reason you brought me here for?" He asked, being straight forward. He was curious as to know what 'help' he needed.

The blonde haired man sat back down. "Da, ve have kontrrract forrr you."


	5. Chapter 5: The Hitman and The Girl

Kai arrived back to Ridgemond High School. The Russian man Nikolai opened the back door of the car and the assassin stepped out. His face had a cold expression, his eyes were narrow. The Russian man wished him luck and drove off leaving the young male standing on the curb alone. He approached the entrance of the school. It was clear that the school day had ended as there was a girl with milk chocolate hair standing in the halls leaned up against the wall. She held her school bag in front of her with both hands, and her head down. The young male walked up to her. She lifted her head up to the assassin with a worried look on her face.

"What are you still doing here?" The male asked.

She hesitated for a moment then answered. "You were called to the office and then I saw you being taken to a car by two men." Ariel continued. "You were gone all day, so I got worried and went to the office and asked if you'll be back. I waited here ever since."

The killer glanced at her as she lowered her head back down. "I'm fine. You have no reason to worry about me." He said with a soldier like tone.

Ariel looked up at him with a smile on her face and her eyes closed. "You're a weird one, you know that?" She said in a cheerful voice. "Let's just go home." Kai nodded and the two headed towards the exit of the school. The clouds were thick and grey, covering the sky. The sun was no were in sight. It had started raining as the duo made they're way home. Neither of them had an umbrella.

"You wanna stop somewhere and wait for the rain to pass?" The velvety eyed female asked. The male nodded in agreement and they both headed to a restaurant nearby. As they entered the restaurant and they were greeted by a female in the usual black formal attire.

"Just two?" She asked. The duo nodded. "Booth or table?"

"Booth." The chocolate haired female responded. They followed the woman who seated them at the booth.

"Your server will be with you shortly." She said before handing them the menus and walking away.

They sat they're in silence only glancing at each other from time to time, but never holding their gaze, until their server appeared. It was a male with short black hair and a trimmed kept beard. "How are you guys doing today? My name is Ian and I'll be taking care of you guys today." His spiel was on point, as if he has used it a hundred times everyday. "What can I start you guys with? Drinks, appetizers?"

"I'll have tea." The female started.

"Sweet or unsweet?" He responded.

"Sweet." She added.

"And for you sir?"

"Umm, I'll have..." The assassin paused. He looked at the selection of drinks before continuing. "I'll try the Dr. Pepper, I've never had one before." He added before looking back up to the female and the waiter who had soon left to retrieve their drinks.

"You've never had a Dr. Pepper before?" Ariel's eyes shot open.

"Negative." Kai responded.

"Dude, it's one of the most popular soft drinks." She added.

"Soft drinks?" He questioned.

"You've never had a soft drink?" She asked. To which the male shook his head.

"Did your parents isolate you when you we're a kid or something?" Kai looked down and tightened his fists at the question. His parents were dead, but he didn't know how to say that. The thought of his mother's death played through his head.

"I don't have any parents." He responded to her question. His voice was low and quiet, and he kept his head down.

"Oh." She started. "I'm sorry, I didn't know." She continued. "I kind of know how that feels. My dad walked out of my life when I was five. My mother raised me alone until she died of cancer when I was 12." She added. She lowered her head as well staring at the menu. She had her hands clenched on her lap with her legs closed. Kai looked up at her, and Ariel lifted her head to meet his gaze. The male didn't quite know how to respond. So the female decided to break the silence, but before she could the waiter made his return.

"Alright, so I've got a sweet tea for the lovely lady, and a Dr. Pepper for you sir." The older male announced. "Are you guys ready to order?" He asked.

Ariel looked at the younger male for a response. "Yeah, I'll have, uhh... The tenders and fries." He answered.

"Okay." He wrote on his little pad and looked up at the female. "And for you miss?"

"I'll have the the salad special." She replied.

The waiter nodded. "Alright, will that be all for you guys?" He asked to which both of them nodded.

"Yes, thank you." The velvet eyed female responded. Kai tried his drink in which Ariel was eager to know how it tasted. "So? What do you think?" She asked him.

"It tastes...interesting. it bubbles in my mouth and feels kinda weird." The female gave a half smile as he continued. "It's pretty good. I like the feeling, and it tastes good." He said as she grinned.

"So Kai, I wondering. Since you live alone, what's the reason for moving and going to school here?" She questioned with curiosity in her voice.

Kai tried to come up with an excuse but couldn't think of any good ones on the spot. "It's complicated." He said.

She hesitated for a minute, then quickly changed the subject. "By the way, while you were out of class our teacher announced that our class will be taking trip to Washington DC." She explained.

"Washington DC?" He repeated.

"Yup, you know with the White House and the Washington Monument?" She tried to remind him, hoping it would click.

"Yes, I have heard of it. But I've never been there." He told her. He picked up his glass and took a sip from the straw before setting it back down. The fizziness sitting in his mouth, popping the flavor all over his tongue.

"Kai, have you ever been to America? Or is this your first time coming back since you we're born?" The female across from him asked. Her velvety eyes were locked on his.

"This would be the first time." He answered her with all seriousness. As if he was standing at attention in front of a superior.

"Then where did you grow up?" She asked ever more curious.

"The Middle East, and Europe." The brown haired male sat up as straight as he could.

"Really?!" She said with excitement.

"Yes ma'am." He assured her.

Jennifer broke silence over the comms with the sound of a thud. "God dammit Kai! You're on a date, don't talk to her like she's your commanding officer!" She yelled at him after remaining silent for so long. "Jeez, I when I agreed to be your handler I thought I'd just be assisting you with locating targets and giving information on them. But here I am, having to give you dating advice. How did it come to this?" She said to herself aloud into the assassin's ear piece.

"What was it like there?" The female across from the killer grew ever more curious. Kai had to think quick. He knew if he told her the truth it would jeopardize the mission. After all he was told straight from the mouth of Trinity's CEO to not let her know about anything regarding the mission, even if that didn't include his past.

"Hot, very hot." He responded. "Europe was nice though, except Germany is often cloudy and not much sunlight." He added.

The waiter made a reappearance with their food. "Alright so I got the salad special for the pretty miss, and the tenders for the young sir." He said before continuing. "Can I get you guys anything else?" The waiter held his hands together, palms crossing each other.

"No thank you, I think we're good." Ariel said with a smile, looking from Kai to the waiter then back to Kai. The waiter nodded and left the two alone.

She then continued their conversation. "I would love to travel and see the world like you have. This school trip will be the first place I visit." The milk chocolate haired female announced. The male sat there, thinking. Those aren't really places anyone should want to visit. War in the Middle East is hell, and it's not uncommon to see fights break out almost every day. He sat there silent as Ariel went on and on about the trip and how she would like to see more of the world. However, the female eventually caught on that he was spaced out and not paying attention.

"Hey Kai, is everything okay?" She asked. The assassin shook his head rapidly to snap back into reality. "What's wrong?" She restated her question. Kai sat up straight with his eyes locked on Ariel's.

"There is nothing wrong with me." He stated in his soldier tone. Of course there was everything wrong with him. He's a 17 year old killer with no remorse, not a single fuck given in the world. At least that would be in the eyes of a normal person. But he isn't a normal person, and what he has done and what he has lived through has made him what he thinks is normal.

"Are you sure?" She asks.

"Affirmative." He assured her. The two go about eating their food in silence. Occasionally they would glance at one another without uttering a word. As they finished the waiter made his final return with the check. Ariel went to pull out her wallet but Kai stopped her.

"There is no need for that. I'll pay for it." He said. He had plenty of money to spare. All the money he had were from payments of contract kills, and being the best mean't he got the best paying jobs. The female froze and put her wallet away. The killer pulled out cash, lots of it, more than the total on the bill and more than the usual tip. One could guess that the waiter got more than a hundred dollar tip alone. The duo stood up and made their way to the exit.

"Oh look." Ariel said. "It stopped raining." She continued. Kai looked up to see the partly gray clouds broken up and the sun shining through the cracks. The outdoors were still wet and humid. The male and female started their walk home in silence, and made it back to the apartments without speaking. Before they split Ariel turned to Kai. She looked into his brown eyes and leapt into his arms for a hug.

"Thank you for the dinner." She said in a cheer, happy, and thankful voice.

"Awwww, look at that Kai? You made her happy." Jennifer broke the silence between them once again. After Ariel walked away and was at a safe distance as to not hear him he spoke.

"What do you mean?" He asked. "I did what you said I should do." He informed her.

"And it made her happy." She said before continuing. "I'm proud of you." The male finally decided to head home. He had thousands of things going through his mind. He made his way up the stairs and finally to the door of the apartment. He opened the door and went straight for his room. Iris was in the kitchen making food. The assassin ruffled through a bag of his belongings until he finally pulled out what looked like a white piece of paper. The white side of the paper felt a little rough, while the other side felt smooth. He sat on the bed looking at the back side of the paper. It had writings of different names. Iris walked up to the room and stopped at the doorway. She saw Kai sitting on the bed looking down. She snuck up behind him and saw the white paper in his hand with names listened. At first she thought it was a list of people to kill or people he had killed. But then he finally turned it over and it was a picture. Her eyes widened as the picture came into focus.

"Who are they?" She asked him. Almost startling him. He looked back behind him to see her looking over her shoulder. He then turned his head to look at the picture again.

"They're my..."


	6. Chapter 6: A Comrade and A Friend

The young boy stares down at a man lying in his bed sleeping soundly. He raised his gun. placing his hand on the receiver and pulled the slide back loading a bullet into the chamber. He stared down the sight of the gun.

"Do it boy, it's your mission." The voice over the radio told him. However it wasn't loud enough to wake the sleeping man.

"Just like it was your mission to kill my comrade back in his hometown?" The young boy asked the voice over the radio.

"He was weak, you serve a greater purpose." The voice replied.

The young boy heard another man walking into the tent saying something in what sounded Russian to the young boy. He quickly hid before the other man could witness his attempt to assassinate the man in the bed. The male in the bed sat up and questioned his presence.

"Kapitan, assassin has infiltrrrated kamp." The man informed him.

"Damn. Nikolai, lock down kamp. Niet one leaves orrr enterrrs." The man ordered.

Nikolai salutes then exits the tent with haste. The young boy who was hiding behind a stack of crates slowing rises off the floor pointing his gun at the man. Before he could pull the trigger the Russian captain spoke.

"So, they sent a child to kill me. I'm impressed you were able to breach a Soviet base, that takes some skill." The man turns around facing the back of the tent. The young boy slowly creeps out of the shadows, his gun first revealed pointing at the Russian. He halts barely revealing his face from the shadowy corner.

"Vhat is yourrr name little one?" The blonde haired man asked. The boy takes a step closer now putting his finger on the trigger.

"I vould like to know name of one who's trrrying to kill me." He began. "Vherrre arrre my mannerrrs, my name is Viktorrr."

The boy hesitated for a moment then spoke. "My name is Kai." He replied lowering his gun.

"And vhat is rrreason forrr attempting to kill me?" The man asked while taking a step closer causing young Kai to raise his gun.

"I was told that if I don't kill you, you're gonna hurt a lot of innocent people." The young brown haired male stated.

"Innocent?" Viktor continued. "people verrre fighting arrren't innocent. Zey kause chaos, ve'rrre herrre to rrrestorrre peace and orrrder." He takes a step forward. "Zey'rrre ones who kill innocent." He says taking another step foward. "I've vatched what zey do to zeirrr people. Zey burrrn zem, mutilate zem, rrrape, and murrrder childrrren." He takes another step forward until he is finally able to snatch the gun out of the young soldier's hands. "You'rrre fighting on wrrrong side, join us if you rrreally vant to make differrrence." The now armless young male just stands there taken aback by what just happened.

Soon Nikolai rushed in the tent with 2 other men armed with AKs

"Kapitan!" He shouted, while the other 2 men pointed their guns at the young brown eyed male.

Viktor steps in the way of the boy blocking sight of the AKs that were pointed at him.

"Kapitan, vhat arrre you doing?" Nikolai asked.

"I vill not let you kill zis child, bekause if ve do ve arrre niet better zen people verrre fighting." He replied, but then continued. "Besides." He paused turning his head and body slightly to look at the young male. "He'll join us, von't you Kai?" Viktor looked down at him with a smile. The young chocolate haired boy look up at the soldier and nodded.

"...They're... my comrades." He replied.

I know, this was a pretty short chapter. I was wanting to reveal more of Kai's past, but not too much. Please feel free to comment and leave a vote if you liked it and want to read more.


	7. Chapter 7: Blood Money

"Oh that's right, you were part of some of the wars in the Middle East." Iris commented while looking over the male's shoulder.

"Affirmative" He responded.

The silver haired woman walked to the door way of the room she placed one hand on the door frame. "Well, I'm gonna make dinner. I thought it would be nice to have a movie night tonight." She said as she turned to look at the assassin with her luscious green eyes. Her figure silhouetting in the doorway, as if she was posing.

"Roger that" the brown eyed male replied. Iris then left to begin on the task of making dinner. Which gave Kai the opportunity to contact Jennifer about the contract. "You there Jen?" He asked her over the comms of the little ear piece.

"What's up Kai?" She asked with sincerity in her voice.

"We've been given a contract, a man by the name of Michael Lawrence." He told the stormy eyed female.

"I'll see what I can dig up on him." She quickly responded before continuing. "I'll let you know what I find."

"Affirmative." Kai removed the piece from his ear and decided it would be good to take a shower to past the time, especially since Iris offered to cook dinner.

The male left the bedroom, walked down the hall, and entered the bathroom locking the door behind him. He lifted his shirt up and his abs flexed as he slightly bent over while pulling it over his head. He unbuckled and slowly began pulling off his pants. The lines of his muscles became visible as he would stand on one leg to remove the pant sleeves. He then started running the hot water in the shower, and removed his boxers. He stepped in feeling the heat of the water against his skin. While soaking in the water he thought about his visit with Viktor. It had been almost 9 years since he's seen him. Though his comrade had aged a bit, he instantaneously recognized the scars. As he quickly snapped out of his thoughts he began washing the toned muscles of his body, and soon ran his fingers through his hair, massaging his scalp in white bubbly foam. He then rinsed and reached out for the handle to turn off the water, and exited the shower. Reaching over he grabbed the towel off the hanger above the toilet and began drying himself thoroughly.

He exited the bathroom with only a towel on. However, he bumped into Iris as soon as he walked out into the hallway causing his towel to come loose and exposing everything. Her face lit up bright red at the sight, though Kai didn't seem to mind it too much. The female quickly about faced waiting for the male to cover himself up again. He picked up the towel, but didn't put it back on. Instead he retraced his steps to the bedroom showing off all his glory to the green eyed female.

He clothed himself in casual loose clothing and then proceeded to contact Jennifer. "Have you found anything on the target?" He asked her.

The stormy eyed female responded. "Actually, yeah." She began. "Apparently he's an attorney who is currently working on a case with a defendant who is being tried for rape, and a possible murder." She continued. "He buried some pretty nasty evidence that lead to his client. I guess whoever sent you this contract knew about it and didn't want this guy to get away with it." She stated.

"What is the evidence?" The brown haired male asked.

"A video of his client sexually assaulting the victim. It's not pretty Kai, this guy is sick."

"Affirmative." he responded. Iris knocked on the wall next to the door and poked her head around the doorway announcing to Kai that dinner was prepared and that she picked out a movie for them to watch. He leapt from the bed and made his way towards the kitchen to fix himself a plate. The ashen haired woman stepped in front of the male and placed her hands on his chest to halt him. She closed the distance between them. Their eyes connected for a moment before she spoke.

"Um, I'll... I'll make your plate for you." she said nervously. "Go ahead and take a seat on the couch and I'll bring your food out to you." Kai nodded at the request and rerouted to the couch.

The TV was in the corner of the room at a 45 degree angle while the couch was up against the wall across from it. The male took a seat at the corner of the couch furthest from the TV and awaited for Iris who had just appeared in the room with two plates of food. She handed Kai his plate. It consisted of chicken mixed with vermicelli pasta and rice. The green eyed female turned on the TV and before taking a seat she walked over to insert a movie. As they watched the movie they enjoyed the food she prepared. The assassin had never had something so good before, of course he only ever made microwaved foods and easy dinners, but nothing this fancy. It didn't take long for him to clear his plate, he was usually a fast eater especially since he never had the time to actually enjoy a meal growing up.

The ashen haired woman noticed the male's empty plate and sprung from her seat to take it back to the kitchen. In her absence Kai decided to sprawl out on the couch with his upper back against the armrest to face the TV in a better and more comfortable position. Iris made her return and noticed the killer sprawled on the couch. Unfazed by the sight she decided to sit in the center of the couch in between the toned male's legs and rest her head on his chest. Half way through the movie the female began stroking his chest lightly giving him chills. It felt oddly pleasing to him, he's never had chills like that other than cold shivers. They held that position for the rest of the movie and until the female's green eyes were closed and fast asleep.

Kai slowly slid out from under the sleeping beauty as to not wake her. He quietly stepped out of the room and down the hall to the bedroom. Quickly, the male stripped and put on a pair of black suit pants, a belt, dress shoes, as well as a white button down shirt with a red tie. He strapped a shoulder holster tightly to his torso and covered it with a black suit jacket. He fitted his gloves and grabbed his issue from the night stand and made sure it was loaded before setting it in the holster.

"Alright Jen, what other information do you know about the target?" He walked out of the apartment ready for his mission. His fingers began to twitch as he thought about killing his next target.

"Right, Mr. Lawrence leaves work at 5:30, but he doesn't get home until late as he usually goes drinking at a local bar."

"Good, then I still have time." He interrupted her.

"I've sent you his address."

He rode his vehicle to the address given to him. The assassin was getting eager on how he should eliminate his target. The thoughts of another kill excited him. It's been months since he was given a contract. He had so many ideas on how to dispose of the attorney, whether it would be fast or slow, gory or clean. However, fast and clean seemed to be the better alternative at the moment, as he had to get back to the apartment soon before Iris realizes he left.

The hitman pulled up to the house, exited the vehicle, and opened the trunk to gather a silver brief case. He closed the trunk and walked up the steps to the house. "Kai, I should probably let you know, he doesn't live alone." Jennifer announced to him.

"They never do." He responded to her as he began lock picking the door.

He entered the home. It was a generic house with stairs located in front of the door to the right. To the left of the door there was a doorway that seemed to lead to a family room that was one step down from the doorway. In that room was a TV and fireplace with a shelf above it. Pictures of the target and his family were posed on the shelf and lit by a spot light from the ceiling. Between the doorway leading to the family room and the stairs was a hallway that led to a kitchen. To the right of the kitchen was a dining room that led around back to the stairs in front of the house.

Kai quietly marched up the stairs. The left side of the stairs was a hallway leading to bed rooms, and to the left was what looked like an office with a fire place. He took a seat in the office behind the desk and awaited for his target to arrive home. After patiently waiting 20 minutes for the attorney the window of the office lit up by a bright moving light. The brown haired hitman stood up and approached the window to observe who had arrived. He saw a man who had grayish hair and looked to be in his forties wearing in a suit vest and tie leaving his car.

"That is Michael Lawrence. The man has gotten many of his clients to walk away unscathed. He graduated from law school at the top of his class and scored a 195 on his bar exam. His skills as an attorney are excellent, but he's too dangerous to leave alive. You know what to do. Good luck, and good hunting Kai." The voice announced in his ear.

The attorney entered his home and began walking up the stairs after closing and locking the front door. He walked into the darkness of the office and flipped a switch on the wall to light up the room. The man froze as he saw a male with brown hair in a black suit with a red tie. He was sitting in the office chair behind the desk holding a gun pointed at the attorney.

"Who...what are you doing in my house!" The man demanded.

"Tell me, Mr. Lawrence, do you know what your client has done to that poor girl?" The male pierced the attorney with his milk chocolaty colored eyes.

"What are you talking about!? My client is innocent!" He shouted before Kai interrupted him.

"Better keep quiet Mr. Lawrence. You wouldn't want to get your family involved now, would you?"

"Don't make me call the police."

"Now, now, you could do that? But I can shoot you faster than the cops could get here, and that would be a real blood bath, wouldn't it?" The male smirked at the thought.

"What do you want from me?" the man asked as his eyes averted to the floor and his head sunk a little.

"Sit!" The hitman barked at him in a strong tone causing the man to immediately take a seat in the chair across from him at the desk. Kai opened the brief case which contained files, documents and pictures. "Your client is being charged with rape and first degree murder."

"He is innocent." The attorney replied nervously to which the assassin did not take too kindly. He removed a picture from the brief case and closed it with aggression.

"This girl! Does she mean nothing to you!?" He shoved the photo in the man's face. The attorney averted his gaze away from the picture. "Look!" The old man still wouldn't look at the girl. The assassin stood up and removed a knife from behind his jacket. He violently grabbed the man's arm and placed it on the desk. "You better tell me or I'll start cutting off fingers."

"Okay, okay. I destroyed some evidence that would prove my client guilty." The old man cried out.

"Awe man, you're no fun. I was hoping to cut off a few just to see how far you'd go." The hitman removed the knife from the attorneys fingers and unhanded him. He checked his watch. "Well, I'm just about all out of time. I was hoping to have a little more fun with you." He said before the old man cut him off.

"You're letting me go?" He asked.

"Nah." The assassin gave a smirk and pointed his gun at the attorney's head and pulled the trigger giving off a loud bang.

"...good work Kai, I've received the money and it's been wired to your account. Now, find an exit."


End file.
